hi! i’m emma valentine!

so happy you’re here.

just wanted to introduce myself a bit.

i’m emma valentine! & haha yes that’s my real name. shoutout mom for having me on valentines day. i grew up in the coastal town of santa cruz, california; surrounded by a community of surfers who had a deep admiration for the sea. my life practically revolved around what the ocean was doing on a daily basis. schedules would change depending on what the tides were doing. school would be ignored when swells were at their peak. sunset surfs would only end when it became too dark to see the waves. my childhood was full of freckles, jack johnson, & endless amounts of sand in my hair, pockets, & bed. my parents always encouraged me to appreciate & imitate the beauty around me, in all capacities. i like to think i took their advice to heart : )

i began street performing downtown santa cruz, with my cousins around age ten. most summer saturdays, you could find 12 little kids jamming for a few hours on the street. we had our voices, a piano, 2 violins, an accordion, mandolin, guitar, bass, melodica, irish whistle, multiple ukuleles, & 3 different drums. it was as entertaining as it sounds haha. sometimes a crowd of 100 would gather, & sometimes we’d perform for hours to an audience of one.

i saw first hand the joy music brought strangers & quickly became aware of the deep joy it brought me, even when no one listened. i’ve followed that joy so many different places. opportunities to perform on american idol, share songs i’ve written, & record with artists i’ve admired for years, such as jason mraz.

i’ve sat by more than one bedside, playing a friend their favorite song, surrounding them with music as they passed from this world to the next. each opportunity looked so different, but music was a way of lifting up others.

around age 15, i suffered a back injury from a snowboarding accident that took me out of the water for almost a year, leaving me to sit on the beach while i watched my friends paddle out without me. pretty much worst case scenario for a kid who had major ‘fomo’ (fear of missing out). that was the year my mom bought me my first camera. i quickly realized that capturing others in their element, doing what they love, brought the same satisfaction as doing it myself!

photography became a way of story-telling for me. i wanted to create images that evoked emotion & told a story far beyond the frame. the name emma means ‘embracing everything’ & i laugh now, because it just makes sense. i just love all forms of artistic expression.

nothing makes me happier than capturing the essence of who someone is through my lense. i’m beyond excited to turn this passion of mine, into a way of meeting new people & telling their stories.

i’ve got stacks of handwritten journals scattered throughout my room, & can’t wait to continue this digital diary. to keep it casual, i guess i’ll end with a few random things about me : )

i’m a big morning person. nothing makes me happier than a bowl of fruit. for my birthday i received a bag of mangoes from my mom, a box of blueberries from a friend, & a basket of pomegranates from my cousin. you get the idea. i usually feel claustrophobic if i’m not near a body of water for awhile. i make lists for everything in my life. words of affirmation are my love language. i hope to someday have my own home by the sea & give my kids the childhood i had. my 3 brothers & sister make my life so much sweeter. surf trips are my favorite reason to travel.

excited to use this platform to document my travels, share my heart, & occasionally some low quality iphone photos.


that’s all from me today!

much love

@itsemmavalentine